The Child in the Cupboard
by MissAusten
Summary: A little girl needs help and a home and Bones is there to give it to her. Booth and Bones romance too.
1. The Child in The Cupboard

* * *

Author's Note: Hi everyone, this is my first Bones story and I would love and appreciate any feedback! I'll try to update as regularly as possible. And of course, I DO NOT own anything affiliated with Bones or really anything else.

The Case & The Cry

"Yo, Bones. Look alive," Seeley Booth strolled with a purpose into the office of his partner, who looked up at him from her desk with a confused look.

"Do I not appear to be living?" she asked seriously, causing Booth to sigh.

"It's a saying, Bones. Means get up, get going we got a case!"

"We _have_ a case, Booth," she corrected with the hint of a grin as she stood and snatched her coat out of his arms. "What's going on?"

"Woman found in her apartment downtown. Nasty scene. Neighbor called it in when the smell began to infiltrate," he explained. "And we need you because she's been, uh, scalped."

"Scalped?" Brennan repeated.

"I know, right? Who scalps anymore? I thought we got rid of the whole practice when the west was won," Booth grinned.

"I don't know what you mean."

"You know, cowboys and Indians? Scalping?" At Brennan's blank look, Booth gave up. "Nevermind, Bones."

"Actually, the ancient Mayans practiced scalping as a way of preserving their identities in the Heavens. It was very symbolic and even beautiful for them," she explained earnestly.

"Yeah, well, that's debatable. I'm driving."

* * *

"Female, 25-30. Scalp removed, with what appears to be some sort of jagged instrument. Markings indicate low level of skill by perpetrator," Brennan took in the body before her and made her observations while Booth stood behind her, looking at the corpse with thinly veiled disgust.

"How could someone do that?" he asked, and Brennan considered the question.

"A lot of care, attention to detail, and a great calm," she answered. "It's going to be hard to find whoever did this – he didn't leave many clues behind."

"Yeah well, maybe we'll get lucky and spot a guy walking down the street with a scalp belt," Booth muttered, causing Brennan to turn to him.

"Why on Earth would anyone be walking down the street with a belt made of scalps?" she asked in the tone of voice she had that implied he was daft. Even though she was the one who often didn't get the references, it was he who always ended up feeling stupid.

"Bones, you ever seen a Western movie?" he asked, already knowing the answer. But before she could reply, there was a shout from one of the detectives from the kitchen. Booth and Brennan ran towards the scene of the commotion.

"What the hell is going on?" Booth asked one of the investigators once they reached the doorway.

"God, this is terrible," the man replied. "We were just checking everything, you know, and then under the sink in the cupboard, we found her."

"Her?" Brennan questioned. The man rubbed his temples.

"Yeah," he said, turning aside so they could see into the kitchen. "Her."

Sitting in a tiny ball still in the cupboard was a very little girl. Her clothes were dirty and her face streaked with tears, her eyes open wide in fear. She looked to be no older than two, and she was clutching a brown stuffed bear.

"Oh Jesus," Booth murmured. "Well we need to get her out of there," he stated, and walked towards the little girl slowly. It was likely that she had witnessed or heard at least some of her mother's torture and death, and Booth's heart broke.

"Hi sweetie," he said, kneeling down so that he was at her level. The little girl trembled in fear, and recoiled when Booth reached out a hand to her. She began to cry, small shaking cries and Booth stood back up. "Bones, you try."

"What? Why? I told you Booth, children don't care for me," she said matter of factly.

"Just, try. Okay Bones? We need to get her out of there so we can make sure she is alright, and she isn't responding to me." Bones gave Booth a look, but made her way to the cupboard in which the little girl was motionless. She imitated Booth and crouched down.

"Hi sweetie," she said, a little awkwardly perhaps. "No need to cry." Her words of comfort were offered directly. The soothing aspect, Brennan assumed, was in the fact of the statement and not in the actual fluctuations of her voice. Amazingly enough, the little girl quieted and looked Brennan in the eyes, and Temperance Brennan's heart broke a little bit. Uncertain, she glanced at Booth, who nodded for her to continue. She held out her arms, and the little girl didn't recoil. Encouraged, Brennan reached into the cupboard and scooped the child out. Instantly, the little girl wrapped her arms around Brennan tightly and refused to be put down.

"What do we do now?" Brennan turned to Booth, who looked at her and the child in her arms.

"How would you feel about keeping her for the night?" Booth asked, and Brennan looked at him confused.

"Shouldn't we just call Child Services?" she asked, and Booth nodded.

"Yeah, and they'll probably put her in an emergency foster situation, but since you're already a foster parent, and considering we don't know if there is any evidence on her and that she looks like she's been through a very traumatic experience, and since she's clinging on to you for dear life, I think she should stay with you tonight. I'll stay with you too, to help, if you want."

"I mean – I don't have anything for her to wear, or play with, or eat really," she looked at the little girl. "But I suppose that she needs some stability right now. Call child services, tell them I'll keep her until relatives can be identified and found." Even though the child was so young, Brennan couldn't help but see herself reflected in the despair present in the girl's eyes – Brennan knew exactly what it felt like to feel lost and abandoned like this little girl was.

"Bones, you're doing a good thing for her," Booth commented as he placed his hand on the small of her back and let them out of the room.

"This isn't permanent, Booth. It's very late, she clearly needs some individual attention that cannot be provided by Child Services, and I am willing to do that for one night," Bones replied, and Booth nodded.

"Well, it's still a good thing, Bones. It's still a good thing."


	2. The Snuggle in The Bed

The Snuggle in The Bed

The Snuggle in The Bed

"Alright, in you go Bones," Booth said as he held her door open for her, a few bags of groceries and diapers in his arms. Brennan walked in with the little girl still in her arms. The little girl had refused to be put down and was clinging to Brennan with desperation the woman understood.

"Thank you, Booth," Brennan said as she took a bag from him and began unloading groceries, finding it a little difficult as the small child was only allowing her one arm and hand with which to do so.

"Here, Bones, let me get that," Booth stepped up to the counter. "Why don't you get her into these pajamas?" He pulled a pair of pink pajamas out of the bag. Brennan smiled.

"You know, you are being quite alpha-male right now, Booth," she commented, and Booth looked up to retaliate but saw the gentle smile on her face and understood.

"Yeah well, gotta take care of the ladies," he replied as Brennan took the little girl and the pajamas into the bathroom.

"Okay sweetheart. I'm going to have to put you down now, but logically you'll understand that it's only necessary to do so to put your pajamas on," Brennan found herself talking to the little girl as if she were a fully capable adult, and smiled at what Booth would say to that. "I mean, it's going to be okay," she amended as she sat herself on the floor with the child. "Oh! But we need a diaper," she realized as she took the dirt-stained pants off the girl. "Booth!" she shouted, "Can you bring us a diaper?"

"Your wish is my command, Bones," he said, appearing at the door to the bathroom. He held out the diaper, and Brennan looked up at him, surprised.

"Oh, I don't know how to do that," she said. "I have no experience with changing a diaper."

"Aw Bones, are you kidding me?" Booth grumbled, but then made his way down to the floor to join the girls while Brennan addressed their charge.

"Booth is going to have to change your diaper," she explained. "But he is a very nice person and he's my friend. So I'm going to lay you down and Booth is going to help you out."

"Thank you for that introduction, Bones," Booth said with a laugh. Then he looked down at the little girl, her eyes wide. She had allowed Brennan to lay her on the bathmat, but was still clutching the woman's hand in fear.

"Okay sweetie," Booth began in a soft voice. "Let's get you all cleaned up," he continued to talk to the little girl as he changed her diaper, and surprisingly the child didn't protest. As soon as she was dressed in her pajamas, she latched right back on to Brennan, and the trio walked out to the living room.

"You don't have to stay the night here, Booth," Brennan began. "But in the morning, I'm going to bring her to the lab. Zach and I will begin to identify the body and I'll have Angela start looking for relatives. I want to make sure she goes somewhere she's wanted, Booth," she added the last sentence quietly, and Booth gave her a reassuring smile.

"Hey Bones, don't worry. We'll get her all taken care of, okay?"

"I'm just worried about her, Booth," Brennan stated. "I would say she is close to two, and we haven't yet heard her speak a word. She's also so small, underfed. I'm just concerned for her well-being." Brennan spoke so earnestly about her care for the small girl that Booth could do nothing but wrap his arms around the both of them.

"She's gonna be okay, Bones, I promise," Booth whispered in his partner's ear. "You sure you don't want me to stay?" he asked as he pulled away.

"Yes, Booth, I wouldn't want you to be uncomfortable on the couch when you have a bed at home. I appreciate the offer, but I think I can manage given that I think it would be impossible to lose her as she is currently glued to me," Brennan told him, and Booth smiled.

"Alright, Bones. Call me if you need anything. I'll see you girls in the morning. Goodnight sweetie," he added to the drowsy child. "Night, Bones."

Temperance Brennan woke up with a start as she heard a loud wail. Frantically she remembered that she had a small child in her bed – the girl had refused to sleep anywhere else, and had finally fallen asleep curled up next to Brennan with her little hands clutching Brennan's pajama shirt. She looked over and saw the little girl sitting up, crying and shaking. It took her a few seconds to realize that the little girl was whimpering "Mama" in between her cries.

Brennan was paralyzed for a few seconds, unsure of how to respond to this new situation. She thought of calling Booth, but didn't want to wake him. Instead, she pulled the little girl close to her.

"Shhh," she cooed, rubbing the girl's back the way she could distantly remember her mother doing to her when she was upset or sick. "You're going to be okay, Booth promised," she told the baby. "When Booth makes a promise, he keeps it. Except the one time he promised he'd never leave me, and then he fake-died for two weeks. But, you're going to be okay. Booth promised, and I promise," Brennan was talking more to herself than the girl, but the combination of soothing tones and Brennan rubbing her back had calmed the girl, and she was no longer crying. Brennan looked down, surprised, and wiped the tear streaks off the small face.

"I did it. I calmed a child," she commented to herself, and smiled down at the little girl who was fighting to keep her eyes open. "Goodnight," she whispered, and laid herself back down with the little girl snuggled right next to her side.


End file.
